spanker
1
9.9
A sail at the back of a ship on the lowest mast
- noun
- /ˈspæŋkər/
- Specialized
:
vela de popa
- As the sailing ship picked up speed, the captain called for the spanker to be hoisted.
Examples
-
The crew adjusted the spanker to better catch the wind during the race.
-
Stand by the spanker.
-
Lugs and spankers, jibs and spinnakers, top gallants and moonrakers, all spread to the wind.
Fiction book (1994) -
To improve the vessel's maneuverability, they tightened the spanker lines before entering the harbor.
Synonyms
1
9.9
A sail set on the rear mast that runs front to back
is the same sail but usually placed on the aftermost lower mast
9.9
A sail set on the rear mast of a sailing ship
is the same sail but specifies it on the aftermost lower mast
9.9
The lowest sail on the mast at the back of a sailing ship
refers to a fore-and-aft sail on the aftermost lower mast rather than lowest
8.6
A sail set along the length of a boat rather than across it
is a specific example placed on the aftermost lower mast
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Spanker as a sailing word may come from the same root as spank ('to hit'), a sailor idea that the aft sail seems to 'beat' or drive the air at the stern. So a spanker is the sail set at the back of a ship that helps push and steer.